I have the profoundest respect for fiction as thought. It has to have that degree of integrity. That’s fundamental. Everything else grows out of that. I do hope that the people I teach learn to be very critical of their premises. To ask soundness of themselves. If there’s one thing in this world I’m grateful for, it’s teaching in a program that does not give grades. Because it’s absolutely ridiculous. Somebody can make a fantastically gross error one day and be completely brilliant five years later. It makes no sense at all to say that this failure matters in any absolute way or is an indication of anything beyond itself.

You’re welcome Cheryl and Kim, I know! Grade-less sounds magical. What I would give to get to be a student at Iowa. Although I don’t want to take the GRE again (the first time was BAD ENOUGH) either. So i guess i wouldn’t give that much.